


like a plant growing out of asphalt

by ancneun



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, F/F, Fluff, Minor Violence, in later parts, tw for guns
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-21
Updated: 2020-07-22
Packaged: 2021-03-04 18:54:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,136
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25421227
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ancneun/pseuds/ancneun
Summary: She makes the uninterrupted trip to Kara’s floor, still bothered by the silence of it all, but shrugging whatever paranoia is taking over her in her eagerness to just get there.Finally stopping in front of Kara’s apartment, she knocks and waits for her to open.No one responds.Frowning, she tries again, calling out to Kara this time, but all she hears is a quiet groan and a soft thud—And that is enough to alarm her and make the decision to push the door open, which doesn’t even resist her force at all.What welcomes her chills her to the bones.orlena wants to make amends with kara, but lex is a jerk. as usual.
Relationships: Kara Danvers/Lena Luthor
Comments: 8
Kudos: 313





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> this prompt was supposed to be fluffy, if not cracky, but cautiouslyoptimistic gave a very compelling version of it and i just can't not write it.
> 
> hope you enjoy it! as usual, unbeta'd.
> 
> **TW for gun violence**

There have been plenty of moments in the past, since the revelation, in which Lena considered making amends with Kara. Forgive and forget, all that jazz, no matter how easier it is said than done. 

She really does.

Because It is tiring, to say the least, having to live life in a constant fear of being a disappointment and being seen as a villain one moment, then _not_ the next. She wants to go back to old times when Kara had unbreakable trust in her, when offering her help to save the world was a thing she’d gladly do rather than something she did to _convince_ people that she was good. 

It has become a chore, something that she _has_ to do to take people’s attention away from her, as ironic that might sound.

She wants to be able to look at Kara in the eyes and _not_ think about whether the blonde woman is _reciprocating_ her gaze rather than watching her every move. She misses their couch meetings, lunch dates, as well as the comfort that she used to have in thinking that she is just as capable of protecting Kara Danvers in the absence of Supergirl. 

All that, of course, has been shattered by the discovery that Kara Danvers and Supergirl are one person.

She was protecting a highly-capable superhero. 

_Oh, well_.

Still, she wants to make amends. She wants to move forward. She wants to _try_.

So, she sends Kara a message prior to getting inside her car and watching the buildings pass by on her way to Kara’s apartment. The only thing she receives in response is a thumbs up and a happy face emoji, which is a Kara Danvers thing, sure, but something’s off…

She doesn’t think about it much, though. Maybe it’s just Kara not yet feeling entirely comfortable about her visiting or initiating a meeting or a conversation. That’s understandable. Kara has given her a go-signal to go and that’s all that matters at this point.

When her driver pulls over in front of a familiar brick-wall building, she lets out a lungful of breath she didn’t know she’s been holding for quite a while now and steps out of her car.

She makes the uninterrupted trip to Kara’s floor, still bothered by the silence of it all, but shrugging whatever paranoia is taking over her in her eagerness to just _get there_.

Finally stopping in front of Kara’s apartment, she knocks and waits for her to open.

No one responds.

Frowning, she tries again, calling out to Kara this time, but all she hears is a quiet groan and a soft thud—

And that is enough to alarm her and make the decision to push the door open, which doesn’t even resist her force at all.

What welcomes her chills her to the bones.

Kara’s on the floor, writhing and covered in _green_ hues, horribly familiar and—

Lena wants to cry and to drop on her knees, take Kara’s hands in hers and comfort her. But the first thing she does is try to find the source of her suffering. Is it a synthetic kryptonite? A true stone? 

_Where the fuck is it_?

  
  


“Where’s your suit?”

“H-He took it— destroyed it. I’m so sorry, Lena. I didn’t know— I have no idea how he…”

“How typical of _aliens_ to underestimate humans,” a feminine voice drawls from a far corner of the room, snatching Lena’s attention from Kara. Her skin rolls at the sight of… _herself_ , yet the gait is wrong, the gestures are wrong, and the eyes—

Her replica disappears like a curtain being drawn and comes from beneath the surface is Lex in his impeccable suit, smiling so slyly as he spreads his hands as if he has done something so grand.

“See, this is how I will _cleanse_ this planet of creatures like you, Supergirl. You’re _stupid_ underneath all that—” he gesticulates in the air, fingers fluttering. “— muscles and inhumane abilities. _Useless_ , really.”

“Lex,” Lena hisses. 

_“Sister_ ,” he replies, turning his eyes on her with the same snarl on his lips as he makes his way closer to them. “I see you’re still associating yourself with the likes of her— even after _everything_ she did to you, Lena?”

Lena feels a significant thud in her chest, a warning coming straight from her heart that whatever Lex wants to put into words, they’re not good. They are _never_ good; now more than ever, Lena needs Kara and herself away from Lex.

“You should have stayed dead, Lex,” Lena says, completely at a loss on what to do, because Lex’s presence is unexpected, and she can’t help but blame herself for letting her guard down. She should have known better. “You’ve done enough damage—”

“I haven’t done _enough!_ ” Lex cuts in, eyes wide and ablazed. “The aliens are still here; still— _breathing_ the same air we breathe, and every day, _humans_ are starting to believe that they actually belong here.” His lips split into a smile, gradually followed by his quiet, maniacal laughter that sends shivers down Lena’s spine. “And do you know why? It’s because of _her—_ ” he points at Kara, who has somehow managed to roll on her side. “They think it’s _fine_ to have her kind here because she flies around and saves people from their own stupidity. It’s _pathetic_.”

“What’s pathetic is you not giving up this _bullshit_ .” Lena scoffs. “You’ve failed over and over again in this… _ridiculous_ mission to rid the planet of aliens, Lex. When will you realize that you don’t get to decide who lives on Earth? You have _no_ right and—”

“Then who will rid this world of _pests_ like her?” Lex tilts his head, crazed eyes still locked on Lena’s as he moves closer, one foot forward for now, while a finger is pointed accusingly at Kara. “Hm? No one else is doing what needs to be done. _I_ am the only one making actions— a _Luthor!_ A true… Luthor.” He exhales quietly, shakily, as he moves another foot forward. “A true Luthor, Lena. You could be working with me, but you have betrayed my trust over and over again…” 

He shakes his head, his disappointment clear as day on his face, and Lena, despite everything, feels her chest cave in on itself “... You prove yourself to be _nothing_ but a waste of space!” 

A sickening thud follows his words as his booted foot hits Kara square on her jaw. Kara reels back from the blow, completely stunned as the back of her head hits the floor with a resounding _crack_.

“Kara!” She tries to go to her, to gather her in her arms and protect her from Lex, but a distinct click roots her down to her place, limbs stiffening almost painfully as she eyes the barrel of Lex’s gun pointed at her face. 

“Stay where you are, Lena,” Lex hisses, his forefinger already pressed against the trigger. “Or the Kryptonian dies _this instant._ ”

Lena trembles as she tries to find the right words to say, to calm him down, _anything_ to keep him from pointing that gun at Kara and pulling the trigger. Her teeth clatter against each other as she puts her hands up in the air, stepping away from him to appease him. 

“Lex, please…” 

Lex shakes his head before turning to the Kryptonian on the floor, a sick smile spreading across his face upon seeing the blood trickling down the corner of her mouth. “Look at her, Lena,” he whispers. “Look at Kara, the woman you _love_ , the same woman who continued to doubt you at every turn, only taking you back when they needed your _intelligence_ more than anything.” 

Lena closes her eyes. No. Not this. 

_God,_ not now.

“Look at Kara Danvers or should I say, _Kara Zor-El_ ,” he giggles maniacally. “Look at what you can do, Lena. With me. _Always and only_ with me. You can reduce your enemies to nothing but _dust_ on the ground you stand on if you just—” Anger seeps back into his voice, the veins along his temple popping up yet again as he moves into her space, shoving his face against the side of her face. “If you’d just listen to me and join me, **_goddammit_**!”

Lena flinches and moves away from him, her ear ringing from the shear volume of it. For a minute, all she can hear is his rugged breathing, the effort with which he tries to calm himself down as he becomes aware of himself, loosening his tight hold on his gun. Lena swallows the lump in her throat as she lifts her head and meets his eyes with hers, determined and hard as always, jaws tight and stubborn.

“Over my dead body, Lex.”

Silence covers them, eerie and intimidating, as Lex’s anger turns into _emptiness_ in what felt like a millisecond. His labored breathing stops, replaced by a suspicious calmness usually brought by sleep but—

Lex is not asleep. He is awake, staring Lena down, and the evident disappointment on his face is enough to distract her from predicting his next move.

“Well, then.”

_The gun goes off before Lena can take her next breath._


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _The gun goes off before Lena can take her next breath._
> 
> _It rings once, twice, and on the third time, there’s a significant delay, as if the person holding the gun had hesitated to shoot the third round._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> here we are with the second (maybe not?) chapter! i had so much fun writing it. some of you might disagree but this is honestly the first piece that i wrote in which i'm honestly satisfied with how i ended it. 
> 
> hope you enjoy it! as usual, it's unbeta'd. comments are appreciated!

_ The gun goes off before Lena can take her next breath. _

_ It rings once, twice, and on the third time, there’s a significant delay, as if the person holding the gun had hesitated to shoot the third round.  _

Gravity does its work at pulling blood down to the floor despite the resistance of clothes. The first drop touches the cold tile with the echo of a louder thud, a nearly empty magazine followed by the gun with its barrel still emitting little tendrils of white smoke.

Lex falls on his knees, eyes wide and eerily focused at Lena, before his gaze lowers down to his bloody shirt, his trembling hand hovering over the holes on his chest.

“Lena…” he rasps out before he’s taken over by fits of violent coughs, blood splattering out of his mouth and into the floor near her feet. 

Lena’s knees nearly buckle at the sound of his voice, no doubt only seconds away from taking his last breath, and her hands curl into tight fists as she averts her eyes from his form when he  _ finally _ drops flat on the floor, much like how Kara had looked like when she first came into the room. 

A whimper threatens to burst from her throat, but she clenches her jaws tightly to repress whatever sound wants to come out from her mouth, because there are more important things to take care of other than the violent surge of self-disgust and  _ horror _ flooding her. She needs to check on Kara, to make sure she’s okay, and to find the  _ fucking _ Kryptonite that’s causing her such weakness. 

But she cannot bring herself to open her eyes, to do anything other than stay in place and  _ really _ think about the fact that she’d shot her brother twice now and this time… perhaps, this time, he’s truly and well dead.

The thought of him not breathing anymore breaks whatever control she’s summoned and  _ fuck,  _ it’s pathetic. This is Lex Luthor, the very human who’s continually tried to wreak havoc in their lives, even reaching across multiple universes. She shouldn’t be lamenting him, she shouldn’t be stuck where she’s standing. She should be checking on Kara, making sure she’s okay, and yet she breaks down anyway.

Her knees  _ finally _ do buckle, but before she collapses on the ground, a strong pair of arms catches her, not entirely keeping her from falling but softening the impact, at least.

Her hands automatically cling onto the nearest arm as she lifts her head and finally opens her eyes. And there’s Kara, green lines no longer present on the surface of her skin. Instead, she’s  _ okay _ , strong and solid like she’s known her to be, and she’s looking down at Lena with so much tenderness and worry.

It becomes the trigger to her tears and broken sobs. She doesn’t know anything else other than leaning on Kara for support, for  _ strength _ in such a moment of weakness for her. All she knows is she needs Kara around her,  _ with _ her, and if she has to hold onto Kara’s sleeve a little tighter, then she will.

“You’re okay, Lena,” Kara reassures her in her soft, albeit firm, voice. Her embrace only tightens with every second ticking by. “You’re fine, I’m here. We’re safe now.”

And Lena’s so overtaken by relief that she finally allows the darkness to swallow her consciousness, succumbing to her exhaustion.

* * *

Kara has gone through many things in the past months, all of them being emotionally and physically exhausting, yet none of them compares to  _ witnessing _ Lena killing her brother and passing out when reality has taken its toll on the youngest Luthor.

It’s one thing to hear from Lena that she was the one who shot Lex Luthor and it’s an entirely different thing when she’s actually seeing it in person. It’s horrifying, something that further proves that Lena is capable of causing harm and yet— in this particular circumstance, she can’t really shame her for it, can she? 

Because the person she inflicted permanent harm upon was Lex Luthor.  _ Lex Luthor _ . The ultimate villain to Kara Danvers and everyone else… but a brother to Lena first, before a villain. 

Kara cannot even begin to imagine how painful it must be for Lena. She really can’t, and to a certain degree, she doesn’t want to. Because she’s known Lex Luthor as the man whose mission in life was to eradicate the alien population —  _ to kill her cousin.  _ To kill her family, her line,  _ her kind _ .

She doesn’t know Lex Luthor outside of him being a villain, but Lena does and… 

Kara shakes her head as she drops her arms to her sides, pushing away from the pillar from which she’s been watching over Lena as she sleeps on one of the more comfortable beds in the DEO. She hasn’t awakened yet. It’s probably her body trying to give her all the rest she’s been requiring for quite a while, and Kara honestly cannot see a reason why to disturb that.

  
  


So for the meantime, she leaves the med-bay and looks for Alex. 

She finds her in one of the isolated offices of the DEO, still neck-deep in her papers.

“Found anything?” 

Alex purses her lips, clearly annoyed. “No. Obviously, Kryptonite consumption is dangerous even to humans; if he  _ went _ for that and thought that he might be able to become a walking Kryptonite, then he’s dumber than I thought and that’s certainly out of character for him. I resent to admit that, but.” She sighs, shaking her head. “And in the first place, he developed cancer because of being in close proximity with Kryptonite for a long period of time. It just… doesn’t make sense. 

“They’re still trying to look for the source, but we’ve brought in his body,  _ already _ checked it and your apartment… there’s really no traces of Kryptonite left; even a tiny drop of synthetic Kryptonite, none!” Alex throws the tablet she’s holding on the table, her other hand moving up to rake her fingers through her hair out of frustration. 

Kara is silent, stunned by the anger radiating off of Alex, yet understands it enough to not say anything about it. However, her silence doesn’t mind ignorance. Alex is a brilliant agent, of that she is sure of, but the fear of almost losing Kara yet again must be clouding her need to look at things from a wider perspective, too focused on the frame enclosing her, Lex, and Lena. 

When Lex came to her under the guise of his sister, she had truly sensed something off, but the simple elation of having Lena in her apartment after a while was enough to make her let her guard down. She noticed the wrong gait, the wrong tone, the wrong way with which those eyes looked at her— and yet, she still allowed things to happen.

She ignored the way his eyes seem to shift from her to some corner of the room, thinking that it was a Lena thing with her nerves. As it turns out, it wasn’t, and surely, that only means one thing.

Lex hadn’t been alone.

“Did you check surveillance cameras from neighboring buildings?” she asks, eyes narrowing into Alex’s as those brown eyes lift up to focus on her.

Kara watches as realization dawns upon Alex’s face, and immediately, she knows she doesn’t need to say anything further.

Alex exhales heavily.

“Lillian Luthor.”

* * *

It’s been a week since Lex Luthor  _ finally _ died. On the same day, Lillian Luthor was apprehended, too engulfed in her rage and sorrow about her son’s death to be able to properly defend herself and escape. Alex and her team successfully took her in for an investigation, though why there needs to be one, some people aren’t entirely too sure.

Clips taken from surveillance cameras outside Kara’s apartment building had shown solid proof of Lillian’s participation in Lex’s scheme. Like Kara had figured, Lillian Luthor had been present during the entire thing, standing on the fire exit just outside Kara’s windows, holding what was obviously a device that’s meant to emit radiation similar to that of Kryptonite.

She’d been merely watching the entire thing go down, thumb firmly pressed against the button of the device, and had only ceased when the gun went off thrice and, according to her reactions in the clips, Lex finally met his demise.

These are clips that Kara has seen and still continues to remember, sometimes finding herself randomly thinking about the fact that the entire Luthor family had been present during her time of weakness, albeit one of them is clueless and  _ not there _ to murder her.

These are also clips that Lena continues to refuse to watch, and Kara doesn’t blame her.

Still, it hurts to hear Lena cry at night since they parted ways last week. Kara had wanted for Lena to stay with her in her apartment, but clearly she hadn’t thought that through properly because as soon as those words came out of her mouth, Lena’s face had crumpled and those walls just went up a mile higher again.

Kara tried to apologize, suggesting that she stay with Lena in her penthouse instead but…

Lena had refused and asked for space instead.

For the most part, Kara is doing well with giving her space. She’s learned that people really  _ do _ need space, especially after killing your bother for the second time— like,  _ really _ killing him this time.

It’s a win for Supergirl and her friends, and while she wants Lena to consider it as a win as well, Kara knows it’s easier said than done.

It’s why she always finds herself edging closer to her window every night since the last time she’d seen Lena. Every night, she’d stand near the windowsill and just…  _ listen _ .

It doesn’t take her long time tune in on Lena and every time, it’s to the sound of her sobbing, of her pouring something in a glass and gulping it down as though it is just water when clearly, it isn’t.

And with every refill, the need to fly over to her penthouse gets stronger and stronger.

That night, on the third refill, or the sixteenth refill since last week, Kara finally gives in and takes off.

She lands on Lena’s balcony only a few seconds from then and makes herself welcome, not bothering to knock or wait or anything, really. She pushes through the glass doors and follows Lena’s quick heartbeat, ignoring the sound of  _ something _ alerting Lena of intrusion.

She isn’t intruding. Not really. She’s there for a friend, and if her friend is currently huddled under the covers in her bed, she really can’t be bothered about an artificial intelligence telling her that it’s wrong to be there.

“Lena,” she calls out quietly, finally slowing down near Lena’s door, which has been left open for some reason. “I’m sorry for just… coming here. Without your permission. I just— You’ve been crying and…”

Lena moves under the cover and Kara can barely hear her soft sniffling as a head of black hair finally pops out from underneath the covers. Lena’s usually vibrant, green eyes are dull, surrounded by a tinge of red from all the crying she’s been doing since the day they last saw each other.

Kara immediately reaches out and takes one step forward, but stops again just after she’s crossed the threshold. She waits this time while also trying her best to convey her eagerness to  _ be there _ for Lena, to comfort her in more ways than just letting her know that she’s concerned about her.

Luckily for her, Lena doesn’t take long to nod her head and lift the covers, revealing an empty space just waiting to be filled up by Kara. The blonde moves over to that side of the bed and lowers herself down as slowly as possible so as to not jostle Lena any further. She leans against the headboard, suddenly unsure whether she should mimic Lena’s position in bed, and just finds herself crossing one ankle over the other, and her twining her fingers over her lap, although her hands are itching to reach out to Lena.

“I know that this is a stupid question to ask but,” she swallows and smiles a little. “How are you, Lena?”

Lena snorts quietly, even rolling her eyes before she can hide her face under the cover from Kara’s sight. But instead of saying something witty, she remains quiet, and if Kara is still confident about their  _ friendship _ , she’d come to a conclusion that Lena’s simply savoring the moment in the present.

The fact that Kara is in her bed,  _ in her bed,  _ and not just on the couch, or anywhere impersonal, is quite a huge factor to consider, and Lena’s not sure what she did in her lifetime to deserve such a moment like this.

_ Oh, right _ . _ I killed my brother for her. _

It’s a sobering thought, one that erases the growing simper on her face; but it’s also one that pushes her to move and pull the cover down to her waist. She uses her arm to hoist herself up and inch closer to Kara until her head is resting on the blonde’s lap, noting the soft gasp coming from her, but ignoring it entirely out of sheer selfishness.

She closes her eyes, then, and takes a moment to bite her lip before speaking, “Lex is an idiot.”

Out of all the things Kara’s expecting her to say, that is definitely the least of them, but she chuckles nonetheless, grateful for the lack of tension and overall softness.

“Yeah?”

“Yes,” Lena whispers, biting her lip again as she lifts her gaze to meet Kara’s. “I’m sorry, Kara.”

“What for?” Kara tilts her head and finally,  _ finally _ , moves her hand to touch the tip of her fingers against Lena’s forehead, her caress so gentle and tender that it threatens to lull Lena to sleep, but she powers through.

“For what Lex said.”

Lena keeps her eyes trained at Kara’s, and it soothes her nerves to see that there’s no attempt at pretending to  _ not know _ what she’s trying to say. Instead, what she sees is the openness that only Kara Danvers can show to someone of her name, to a Luthor, and so it motivates Lena to say more.

“It wasn’t the most ideal way to find out about it; about me  _ wanting _ you…” she shrugs gingerly, suddenly bashful about saying the exact word that Lex had said. “I guess we’re even now, huh?”

Kara doesn’t say anything, and for a moment, Lena’s nerves kick up again, her heart beating significantly faster at the very thought of Kara rejecting her, or saying anything that will surely erase the ease in the atmosphere.

But her eyes widen when she sees Kara’s face inching closer and closer to her, and the surprise that takes over her remains present on her expression even as she feels Kara’s lips against her forehead, those fingers now brushing along her hairline, and it’s only when she feels the soft release of air from Kara that she allows herself to succumb and to just  _ be _ .

“You’re so special to me, Lena,” Kara whispers, and Lena seeks Kara’s hand in hers, entwining their fingers together in a tight grip. “Things will not be easy for the both of us; we will still need to talk about a lot of things and resolve so many things but…”

Lena swallows and waits.

“... But I  _ want  _ you, too,” Kara smiles tenderly at her. “And I’m ready to see where this will lead us.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so what do you think?

**Author's Note:**

> scream at me on tumblr! @ancneun


End file.
